To put the size of the object in perspective, it's about half the size of a football field.

Here's a look at the size of 2012 DA14 compared to one of the retired U.S. space shuttles.

It will pass approximately 17,200 miles away from the earth's surface.

The space rock will pass approximately 5,000 miles inside the orbit of our communication and weather satellites.

There is zero chance of the asteroid hitting the earth, and very little chance of the asteroid striking a communication satellite.

An asteroid like this flies by earth every 40 years, but only strikes our planet every 1200 years or so.

The impact of a 50 meter asteroid would not destroy the entire planet, but would cause severe devastation in the area of impact.

A similar sized object caused a mile-wide crater in Arizona, when it struck nearly 50,000 years ago.

That asteroid was made of iron, which made the impact especially severe. An area approximately 50 miles around the impact site was devastated.

Scientists are still studying the impact caused by an asteroid that struck Asia in the early 1900s.

In 1908, something approximately the same size of the asteroid 2012 DA14 exploded over the atmosphere over Siberia, Russia.

This is an overhead satellite shot of the area of impact in the northern region of Russia.

The impact leveled hundreds of miles of forest. Researchers are still studying the event for more clues.

While 2012 DA14 will get very close to planet earth on Friday, it is fairly small compared to other asteroids, and will not be visible to the naked eye.

The asteroid will only be view-able to people living in eastern Europe, Asia and Australia.

2012 DA14 will have a close, but safe, pass by Earth on Feb. 15, 2013 at 2:25 p.m. EST. (Times listed on the graphic are in GMT)

2012 DA will not impact Earth, but it will come 'interestingly close' as NASA puts it. The rock will come closer to earth than many man-made satellites.

Asteroid 2012 DA 14 is traveling at about 17,450 miles per hour (28,100 kilometers per hour), or 4.8 miles per second

The asteroid will resemble a star of 8th magnitude. Backyard telescopes would be able to see the object, but the speed of the asteroid will pose a challenge.

Casual space observers will be able to see the asteroid with a backyard telescope, but it will be challenging. NASA says the asteroid will move a full degree, or about twice the width of the full moon, every minute.

Only the most experienced amateur astronomers will likely be able to keep track of the space rock.

This will not be the last time planet earth has a close brush with 2012 DA14. The asteroid’s orbit around the sun is roughly similar to that of Earth, and it makes relatively close approaches to our planet’s orbit twice per orbit.

The next notable close approach to Earth will be on February 15, 2046, when the asteroid will pass no closer than 620,000 miles from the center-point of Earth.

Scientists believe there are approximately 500,000 near-Earth asteroids the size of 2012 DA14. Of those, less than one percent have been discovered.

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